Rubber door trim bottom and wind seal



July 23, 1940. s. R. CUNNINGTON RUBBER DOOR TRIM BQT'I'OM AND WIND SEAL Filed July 11', 1938 INVENTOR BY GEORGE R.CUNNINGTON WW, W zfM ATTORNEYS Patented July 23, 1940 UNITED STATES RUBBER DOOR TRISIgAEOTTOM AND WIND George R. Cunnington, Grosse Pointe Park, Mich, assignor to National Automotive Fibres, lnc netroit, Mich, a corporation of Delaware Application July 11, 1938, Serial No. 218,696

10 Claims.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a door panel having a door bottom formed of a unitary piece of rubber.

It is a further object of the invention to pro- 15 vide a door bottom for automobile door panels,

or the like, which are provided with flanges integrally formed thereon to receive the bottom edge of the door panel.

It is a further object of the invention to prom vide a door bottom composed of an integral piece of rubberous material having reinforcing and decorative beads formed thereon.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a door bottom formed of an integral piece a of rubberous material and having a flexible flap adapted to serve as a wind seal thereon.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent as the description proceeds and when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing,

so and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a door panel embodying my invention; and

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary enlarged section taken on the line 2-2, Fig. 1.

35 In vehicle construction and more particularly in the construction of automobile vehicles it has been the practice in the past to provide the inside of the door with a door bottom, scuff pad or kick pad. This has been found desirable for the reason that this portion of thedoor comes in contact with passengers feet and it has been found that a door completely upholstered from top to bottom is often damaged or rendered unsightly by continuous wear at the bottom thereof.

In the past it has been proposed to upholster the door panel in various manners; among these being to apply a layer of resilient padding material over the major portion of the door panel.

tages accrue when thisdoor bottom element is formed of rubberous material. Preferably I mold the door bottom as a single unitary piece of rubber, for this purpose employing a mold adapted to form all of the elements of the door bottom as a unit. By employing this method, I am enabled to provide suitable or other decoration on the exposed face of the door bottom.

It will also be appreciated that by employing a rubberous material I may form the door bottom in any color desired, the color being selected either to harmonize or to contrast with the upholstery material covering the upper portion of the door.

In Figs. 1 and 2, I have illustrated my improved construction. In Fig.'1.I have illustrated a complete door panel I. which is covered with upholstery'materiai II as in the conventional manner. This material may be sewed or otherwise provided with suitable decorations i2; As will be well understood, the upholstered material ll does not extend to the bottom of the door panel and the lower portion of the panel board I3 is covered with the -so-called door bottom generally indicated at ll.

I In the present door panel, as is well understood in the art, a thin layer of unwoven resilient material, such as cotton, jute, blue wadding or the like l5 may be interposed between panel board l3 and the upholstery fabric or material II. This padding material I! which covers the major portion of the panel board but does not cover the lower portion thereof is clearly indicated in Fig. 2.

The door bottom which embodies the subjectmatter of the present invention is formed of a single unitary piece of rubber which is molded or otherwise formed to the desired shape. The particular composition of rubber is selected so as to give long wear and at the same time to permitaflnishtobeimpartedtotheexposed surface thereof. I have found that a rubber door bottom formed as taught herein is so durable as to not be affected by wear and at the same time, due to its surface characteristics, is not easily soiled and when soiled is readily cleaned.

The door bottom It comprises a central area It which in the embodiment shown is rectangular but which, as will be understood, is shaped to. conform to the panel board I3. This central flat area It may be embossed with suitable fine. lines, or if desired other predetermined designs may be formed therein. These may take the form of conventional geometric shapes, lettering, u

and the like.

The central area It is surrounded by a substantially thickened bead I! which adds to the appearance of the door bottom and at the same time materially reinforces the same.

Formed around the bottom and both sides of the door bottom is a real-wardly extending flange II which carries an inwardly extending tapered flange it. As best seen in'Fig. 2, flanges [I and I! provide a slot 20 for the reception of the panel board l3.

As will be readily understood, the panel board may be slipped downwardly into slot 20 at which time the door bottom will embrace the bottom of the panel board at the bottom and along the opposite sides thereof.

Formed as an integral member in the initial forming operation is a downwardly depending flexible flap 2!. As shown in Fig. 2, this flap is formed with an initial curvature but is flexible so that when the door of the vehicle is closed this flap will serve as an eiflcient wind or weather seal.

In assembling my improved door bottom on a vehicle door, it will be noted that a recess 22 is provided along the top bead l'l' for the reception therein of the lower edge of the upholstery material H. The padding material is applied to the panel board [3 so as to terminate substantially along the upper edge of the door bottom ii. The upholstery material ll overlies the padding material [5 and around the upper edges and top of thepanel board is reflected back and adhesively or otherwise secured to the back of the panel board. The lower edge of the upholstery material H is brought into position against the panel board l3 and may be adhesively united thereto, after which the door bottom it may be drawn into position over the bottom of the panel board as indicated.

It is also possible to form the upholstery fabric H and the door bottom It as a unit prior tothe assembly on the door panel. The upholstery fabric H may be placed with its lower edge received in the recess 22 previously referred to and vulcanized or otherwise secured thereto. If this procedure is followed, the padding material I! may then be applied to the panel after which the upholstery fabric and the door-bottom as a unit may be assembled thereon.

In forming my improved door bottom of rubberous material, I prefer to form the same in a mold so that any predetermined design may be impressed into the door bottom, and at the same time by the application of heat and pressure a glossy finish may be imparted to the exposed surface. This glossy finish not only enhances the finished appearance of my improved door bottom but also renders the same easily cleaned throughout its lifetime.

Aside from the substantial and practical advantages previously pointed out, such as long life, durability and the ease with'which it may be kept clean, my improved door bottom offers substantial advantages over constructions now known in the art in its extremeeconomy. I have thus provided an improved door bottom which retains all the advantages of those previously known and which offers other advantages not present in prior structures while at the same time the door bottom embodying the present invention is substantially cheaper to produce and more economical to assemble than those in the prior art.

Where, in the specification and statement of claim, I refer to rubber it will be understood that I intend to include all compositions containing rubber suitable for the purpose set forth, and also those including a large percentage of suitable fllling material to lower production costs.

In some-cases the door bottom may contain or be formed on suitable reinforcing material, such as burlap, and the like.

The foregoing detailed description has been given for cleamess and understanding only, and no unnecessary limitation should be understood therefrom, but the appended claims should be construed as broadly as permissible in view of the prior art.

What I claim as my invention is:

l. A trim panel assembly for vehicle doors comprising a panel board, upholstery material on the upper portion of said panel board, and a rubber door bottom covering the lower portion of said panel board, said door bottom being formed to provide continuous slot forming flanges at the rear to receive the lower edges of Y said panel board.

2. A trim panel assembly for vehicle doors comprising a panel board, upholstery material on the upper portion of said panel board, and a rubber door bottom covering the lower portion of said-panel board and secured permanently to said upholstery material, said door bottom being formed with a flat area adapted to overlie the bottom of said panel board and having a bead formed about its periphery, and an inwardly extending flange on the rear of said bead adapted to receive the lower edge of said door panel.

3. A trim panel assembly for vehicle doors comprising a panel board, a door bottom carried by said panel board, said door bottom being integrally formed of a rubberous material, and having a flat portion adapted to overlie the lower portion of said panel board, flanges at the rear of said door bottom embracing the edges of said board, and a flexible flap carried by said door bottom adapted to serve as a wind seal.

4. A trim panel assembly for vehicle doors comprising a panel board, a door bottom carried by said panel board, said door bottom being integrally formed of a rubberous material, and having a flat portion adapted to overlie the lower portion of said panel board, a reinforcing and decorative bead surrounding said flat portion, inwardly directed flanges at the bottom and sides of said flat area, said flanges defining with said flat portion slots in which said panel board is received.

5. A trim panel assembly for vehicle doors comprising a panel board. a door bottom carried by said panel board, said door bottom being integrally formed of a rubberous material, and having a flat portion adapted to overlie the lower portion of said panel board,,a reinforcing and decorative bead surrounding said flat portion, inwardly directed flanges at the bottom and sides of said flat area, said flanges defining with said flat portion slots in which said panel board is received, and a flexible flap of rubberous material integrally formed with said door bottom extending downwardly therefrom.

6. A door bottom for use with a panel board in door panel manufacture comprising a unitary molded rubberous member having a flat area to overlie the lower portion of a door panel. and rearwardly and inwardly extending flanges to receive the bottom and side edges of the door panel.

7. An article of manufacture comprising a piece of upholstery material shaped to conform to the upper portion of a door panel and a door bottom of resilient material shaped to conform to the lower portion of a door panel permanently united to the upholstery fabric, said door bottom comprising a unitary rubberous member having a fiat area to overlie the lower portion of the door panel and inwardly extending flanges in the sides and bottom of the door bottom to receive the door panel.

8. An article of manufacture for attachment to' a panel board for vehicle doors, a fabric of a size to cover the upper portion of a panel board and extend above and laterally therebeyond so as to be bent around the top and sides and adhered to the back of said panel board, a rubber door bottom vulcanized to the bottom of said fabric to cover the lower portion of said panel board, said bottom having slots at its rear to receive the lower portion of said panel board, whereby said article may be assembled on said panel board by engaging the bottom of said panel board in said slots, tensioning said fabric over the panel board, and adhering the top and sides of said fabric to the back of said panel board.

9. An article of manufacture for attachment to a panel board for vehicle doors, a fabric of a size to cover the upper portion of a panel board and extend above and laterally therebeyond so as to be bent around the top and sides and adhered to the back of said panel board, a rubber door bottom vulcanized to the bottom of said fabric to cover the lower portion of said panel board, said bottom having slots at its rear to receive the lower portion of said panel Iboard, whereby said article may be assembled on said panel board by engaging the bottom of said panel board in said slots, tensioning said fabric over the panel board, and adhering the top and sides of said fabric to the back of said panel board, said bottom having an integral depending wind seal flap thereon.

10. A trim panel assembly for use on vehicle doors comprising a panel board, a rubber door bottom and wind seal having a slotted portion receiving the bottom of said panel board, and a trim fa'bric vulcanized to said rubber door bottom and wind seal, said fabric being tensioned' over the top and sides of saidpanel board and having top and side edges adhered to the back thereof, said fabric retaining said door bottom on said panel board.

GEORGE R. CUNNINGTON. 35 

